Downtown Writer's Center graduates its first class of passionate scribes

John Berry / The Post-StandardPeter McShane, of Fayetteville, is writing a novel based on his experiences as a medic in the Vietnam War. He has just graduÂ´ated in the first class of the Downtown Writer's Center PRO writÂ´ers program.

Peter McShane had written for business journals and newsletters, weaving solid narratives from facts and quotations. But he balked at telling the stories about his time in Vietnam.

Five years ago, the retired banker and consultant signed up for a class at the Downtown Writer's Center, an outpost of literature located in the belly of the Syracuse YMCA. One course begot another. Last month, McShane graduated in the first class of the Center's PRO writers program, finishing two years of work on the book inside him. He's almost there.

"If I learned anything in this, it's that you need people willing to read your material, even when it's not a final draft," said McShane, 65, of Fayetteville. "You'll be judged as a writer by how readers embrace your work. You need people you trust and respect, who are doing just what you are doing." The details Program: Downtown Writer's Center PRO. Who's in it: Writers seeking focused study, who don't have the finances or flexibility to join a traditional master's degree program. Enrollment: Maximum 10 students; five in fiction and five in poetry. To join: Requires written application and a writing sample. Fee: The cost of the two-year program is $2,150 for YMCA members, $2,420 for nonmembers. Schedule: Applications for fall class must be submitted by July 15. Go to: www.ymcaofgreatersyracuse.org/arts

Despite the Internet, Hollywood, the economy and every other reason that continually compels folks to bemoan the death of the great American novel, once again comes evidence that serious writers still live and walk among us. And in a modest program at the downtown YMCA, they are networking.

The center's PRO program (PRO stands for professional) targets prospective poets and novelists who don't plan to churn out a TV pilot or a paperback with supermodel Fabio on the cover. It draws upon local writers who show talent and commitment, but who haven't the resources to chase a master's degree.

"We wanted to take our advanced workshops and turn them into something larger," said Philip Memmer, the writer's center program director.

The first PRO class took shape two years ago after the center's writing staff identified nine students seeking to tackle a book-length challenge. They ranged from retirees, like McShane, to recent college graduates. Most had already been published in a literary journal and aspired to write something with lasting impact.

"They all wanted to get a book finished, and they wanted mentoring in the process," Memmer said.

The program aimed to give its writers time and flexibility. It separated classes into poetry and fiction. Each semester, they took a workshop, a course and received a one-on-one tutorial.

The designers had two goals: To move each student toward a finished manuscript, and to build a community of writers that would continue after the classes ended.

"This first group of graduates is on that path," Memmer said.

That writing path is a lonely one that, especially for poets, offers few commercial applications.

"Poets work day jobs," said Memmer, who has written three books of poems, including one that won the 2008 Idaho Prize for Poetry.

But he noted that the lack of commercial avenues can be liberating.

"For me, one of the great things about poetry is that nobody cares," Memmer said. "I can do what I want to do with words. I don't have to worry about whether it's going to sell, or whether my agent will sell it, or whether the movie rights will be sold -- I can just write my poems, and that's a freeing thing. Maybe on some level, it's tilting at windmills. Poetry doesn't accomplish much, but that doesn't stop it from being necessary."

Those are the sentiments of others in the class.

"I'm kind of a spiritual guy," said Dan Reinhold, 54, of Ithaca, a graduate of the poetry side. "I believe that if you don't fulfill who it is that you are, you will never be happy. So this is part of me fulfilling that."

In recent weeks, Reinhold has found publishers for four of his poems. He said his 80-page compilation is ready to go.

"People in the arts can always say they're writers, but a lot of them don't have that fully developed inner confidence," Reinhold said. "I'm thinking now that I can say, I am a poet."

This fall, the writer's center will celebrate its 10th anniversary in Syracuse. It hosts readings by visiting authors, runs writing workshops and keeps a vast library of poetry journals. Memmer hopes the PRO group's alumni will add to that collection.

Maybe McShane will be a part someday. He said he's within striking distance of finishing his novel, which will be based on his experiences as a medic in Vietnam.

"I guess it's a matter of opinion how far along I am," he said. "In the final analysis, I'm not going to know it's done until I've written it."

That might take a year or two -- longer, he noted, if he hits an iceberg along the way. But McShane said he's not so worried anymore. He has backup.

"What's emerged from this experience is the sense that you can't write effectively in a vacuum," McShane said. "Writing is a solitary pursuit, but you can't do it all alone."